Analysis of online social networks: a cross‐national study
| Pages | 473-495 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/14684521011054080 |
| Published date | 22 June 2010 |
| Date | 22 June 2010 |
| Author | Dong‐Hee Shin |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
Analysis of online social networks:
a cross-national study
Dong-Hee Shin
Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, South Korea
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate users’ underlying motivations for engaging in
social networking through online social networking services (SNS) compared with their behaviour. It
seeks to examine the differences between USA, and Korean users.
Design/methodology/approach – The study surveyed SNS users in the USA and Korea to
determine the key differences between the two countries. Survey questions, developed in English and
Korean, were presented in each country to explore the influences of various factors from the modified
Technology Acceptance Model on SNS user dimensions. The analytic design methods were based on
structural equation modelling and applied to the data gathered. The TAM factors of SNS were
analysed, focusing on the differences in motives between the two countries.
Findings – The results of the online survey of SNS users validated the proposed theoretical model’s
ability to explain and predict user acceptance of SNS very well. While the results illustrate the
importance of both extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, the two countries showed different sets of
motivations, providing useful implications for theory and practice.
Practical implications – Based on the results of the study, practical applications for marketing
strategies in online SNS markets and theoretical applications for cross-national studies are
recommended.
Originality/value – Despite the burgeoning interest in SNS, only a few studies have explored the
acceptance of SNS in a cross-national manner, leading to a paucity of information on how different
cultures influence acceptance of online services.
Keywords United Statesof America, Social networks, Korea,User studies, Cross-cultural studies,
Behaviour
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
A social network service (SNS) focuses on building online communities of people who
share interests and/or activities, or who are interested in exploring the interests and
activities of others. SNSs, as advanced Web 2.0 applications, have become a major
interest for the Information Systems research community. Social networking has
created new ways to communicate and share information. Most SNSs are online based
and provide a variety of ways for users to interact, such as email and instant
messaging services. SNSs are being used regularly by millions of people, and it now
seems that social networking will be an enduring part of everyday life (Dw yer, 2007).
The main types of SNS are those that contain directories of some categories, tools to
connect with friends, and recommender systems linked to trust. Popular methods now
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
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This work was supported by Grant No. R31-10062 from the World Class University project of the
Korean Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Korean National Research
Foundation through Sungkyunkwan University.
This paper was supported by the Faculty Research Fund, Sungkyunkwan University, 2009,
for which the author is very grateful.
Analysis of
online social
networks
473
Refereed article received
22 August 2009
Approved for publication
24 January 2010
Online Information Review
Vol. 34 No. 3, 2010
pp. 473-495
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
1468-4527
DOI 10.1108/14684521011054080
combine many of these, with MySpace and Facebook being the most widely used in
North America. The social networking phenomenon has been also popular in Asia; for
example Cyworld in Korea has become an online craze for teens and for many adults.
Even though the literature on the adoption and the use of Web 2.0 is quite extensive,
few studies have explored the motivations for using the recent SNSs in a cross-cultural
manner, such as MySpace and Cyworld, and the associated antecedents and
consequences from a comparative perspective (Hargittai, 2007). The well-established
Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) framework can be applied to emerging
social-networking technologies, to improve our understanding of the TAM of these
new services. The TAM theory suggests that users’ behavioural intention to use a
technology is affected by its perceived usefulness and the perceived ease of us e of the
technology. The key research question of the present study is to investigate use r
motivations to use SNSs in a two-country context, in order to investigate differences
that may exist for the TAM of Web 2.0 services. Although there might be no universal
measurement of user activities, motivations, and behaviours that is applicable to
different countries, this information is fundamental to understanding why certain
SNSs are adopted in some countries and not in others.
This question is very relevant to the recent failure of Cyworld in the US market.
Cyworld is a Korean SNS that has been very successful in the Korean market. When
Cyworld launched in the US in 2006, it was considered to strong competition for
MySpace. After less than one year of operation, however, Cyworld shut down its US
venture, raising questions about why this failure had occurred. In the same vein
MySpace has 22 versions tailed for specific countries, as well as its US and UK
versions, and also offers additional versions for French Canadians, and thre e
languages for Switzerland, but MySpace has struggled in these international markets.
These two cases of failure illustrate the importance of understanding user contexts,
such as cultural and social factors, prior to launching IT service products in
inter-cultural markets.
In this context Shin (2008) urged researchers to conduct cross-national studies to
determine if TAM is universal or if these types of models serve different functions in
different societies. From a cultural perspective Teo et al. (2008), Goldsmith (2002) and
Phau and Poon (2000) have called for thorough empirical studies to better understand
cross-cultural user behaviour. This cross-national investigation is particularly
important for the online information literature because the information is
transmitted through SNSs to global users. The innovative and global nature of Web
2.0 services has fostered many visions of comparative understanding among countries,
although the research in this area is still at a very early exploratory stage. As online
services become increasingly global, it is important for international marketers to
understand those factors that influence consumer use of international SNS sites.
Understanding what motivates global consumers to use SNSs can help international
marketers to design more effective international SNS sites that target foreign
customers. In addition understanding cross-national perspectives also can produce
insights about online information that is used and produced on SNSs, and adds value
to them. Only a few studies in the literature have attempted to explore the online usage
and activities of global users (Heijden, 2003; Pavlou and Chai, 2002). A second
under-explored area involves the factors affecting the intentions of global SNS users. A
cross-national comparison would be useful in providing practical applications for the
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